The Rise of The Antagonists
by YinWriter
Summary: Now that Emily, Eric and Lisa have met, they're pretty much stuck with each other. After a sudden theft in Toad Town, everybody's caught off guard by the return of villains that they wished they would never see again...
1. Chapter 1: Magic and Mystery

Chapter 1: Magic and Mystery

Well! Now that you've met the _heroes_ of this series… now it's time for you to meet the _villains_. What, you thought _**Bowser**_ was the main baddie?! Good heavens! Of COURSE not! He's a dust bunny in comparison to our REAL scoundrels! Oh, but I'm wasting precious time. Let's just dive into the action (and hopefully come out alive)!

_But first…_

Emily, Lisa and Eric arrived in Toad Town a little later that day. (By that time, the Twins were pretty sick of the word 'bro'!) As soon as they got there, they saw… pandemonium… coming from a nearby building. The building wasn't a regular Mushroom-shaped house. It was a cool tent with flashing lights on top. Someone with a blue cloak and a white moustache and beard was near the front door, freaking out.

"… Eric, is that Merlon losing his mind?" Lisa quietly asked.

"Yeah. I wonder what's wrong," her partner replied. Emily bounded over to the tent to check things out.

***Merlon? Isn't that an overused name for a wizard?*** she thought to herself.

"Wassup, bro?" she wondered as she approached the distraught wizard. The Twins quickly caught up with her.

"Oh my word…" Merlon muttered to himself, barely glancing up at his guests. He rushed back inside and the other three followed him.

"Merlon, is there something wrong?" Eric inquired.

"My dear boy, something _**very**_ important to me is missing!" Merlon finally informed.

"So… What's missing?" Lisa prompted.

"A book full of rituals and spells!" Merlon exclaimed as he searched his shelves frantically. "I left it near my crystal ball last night and when I woke up this morning, it was missing!"

"How many spells were in there?" Emily wondered.

"Oh heavens! I lost count of them all!" came the panicked answer.

"You think somebody stole it?" Eric suggested.

"Mercy me! If the thief has innate sorcery… My word!" Merlon stopped and took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"You know, I thought they might've sold it on ," Emily thought aloud. Lisa gave her a look.

"What were you saying about 'innate sorcery'?" the girl in the black jacket addressed the wizard.

"I don't even wish to think about it! What terrors could possibly befall the kingdom if a wicked one with sorcery in their veins were to obtain the book…" The three visitors got the message. Anyway, they helped search for a bit, but there was no sign of the missing grimoire.

The three exited the tent, confused about the sudden theft.

"Who would steal a book full of magical spells? Maybe a rival wizard or a witch in town?" Eric pondered.

"There _is_ no witch in town," Lisa corrected. "… Just in Forever Forest," she added with a growl.

"Bro, wassup?" Emily prompted.

"Don't ask," Lisa suddenly snapped.

"Why not?"

"Just don't!"


	2. Chapter 2: Look Who's Back

Chapter 2: Look Who's Back

Just near Toad Town, there was… a forest. It wasn't like your average forest. It… was very dark. For whatever reason, whenever someone went inside, they noticed that it always looked like nighttime. Glowing eyes peered at you from inside dead, hollow tree trunks and when you approached certain flowers, they… reacted… to your presence… by… laughing… Don't ask. Forever Forest got its name because if you took a wrong turn, you could very well become lost… _forever_.

This place was a favorite area for local Boos, as you can expect. A certain Boo was prowling around inside Forever Forest that fateful day. He was just looking for potential victims… when he saw something… unordinary, even for Forever Forest. There was someone in the shadow of a large tree, looking hard at… a book. The Boo noiselessly floated over to investigate.

"I don't think I've seen you before," the Boo noted. The person in the shadow barely glanced up.

"I don't think I've seen you either." The Boo now knew that this shadow-person was a woman. Her voice was raspy, but definitely female.

"Do you actually _live_ in here?" the Boo inquired.

"It's more of a temporary residence," came the reply.

The Boo looked at the book.

"… Are those rituals you're looking at?" he asked.

"Yes," the woman answered, sounding like she was getting irritated. "I'm quite busy."

"… Revival? A revival ritual? What're you trying to revive, the trees?" the Boo snickered. "Good luck with that!"

The woman in the shadow glared up at him. Her pinky-red eyes shone in the dark.

"For your information, I'm trying to revive an ally of mine. It takes **immense** concentration! I've already used it twice and it'll only work one more time. I can't afford to screw this up!"

"What're you, a witch?" the Boo giggled.

The woman in the shadow growled angrily.

"As a matter of fact, I am!" she spat.

"Yeah, right!" the Boo jeered. Without warning, the person snapped her fingers… and a bolt of pink lightning came from out of nowhere and nearly zapped the Boo! His smile quickly vanished.

"Oh…" he grimaced.

"You know, that wasn't half bad! But can you beat _this_?" With that, the Boo concentrated… and the ruby crown on the top of his head began glowing. The woman in the shadow watched in shock as several purple beams of energy shot out of the crown!

"Whoa…" the woman muttered in disbelief as the crown dimmed down.

The Boo smiled, showing off extreme arrogance.

"Not too shabby, huh?"

"… You know… That wasn't too bad," the woman admitted, a grin slowly spreading across her face as she got an idea.

"I believe we haven't been properly introduced," she continued.

"What, you haven't heard of me?" the Boo demanded.

"… I'm not from the Mushroom Kingdom. I haven't been here for long… So, no, I don't know who you are."

The Boo's crown began slightly glowing, illuminating the area. The light looked like an aura of menace.

"I'm King Boo, ruler of all ghosts," the Boo introduced. "And you? You look kind of familiar…"

The woman, still holding the book, calmly stepped out of the shadow. King Boo could fully see her now: She wore a pink dress and a purple cloak. She had green skin along with her pink eyes and she also had two purple horns on the very top of her head. Each horn had a single yellow stripe.

"There's a reason I look familiar to you… Have you ever heard of the Beanstar?"

King Boo gasped.

"No way! You're…!" He was too stunned to say her name at first.

"Yes, I am." The person nodded. And that was how the alliance started…


	3. Chapter 3: Mass Panic

Chapter 3: Mass Panic

Back in Toad Town, Emily, Eric and Lisa had no idea what was going on just nearby. After helping Merlon look for his book, they had paid a quick visit to the local Item Shop and gotten themselves some lunch. The three of them sat, dangling their legs from a ledge as they munched.

"So… You were the _shy_ kid in grade school?" Lisa asked as she took a bite of her Mushroom.

"Yep," Emily replied. "I… didn't want other kids calling me a nerd or anything…"

"Who cares what **they** think?!" The girl in the hood suddenly turned to face the plumber girl. "After awhile, names don't bother you anymore… You get used to it." Lisa averted her gaze and bit her lip, as if embarrassed. "I've been called 'Cat' more times than I can remember."

"You know, I think the nickname fits you!" Eric smiled. Lisa grinned back at him.

"Thanks." The two friends went silent and looked away from each other.

***… They SO like each other!*** Emily thought to herself. ***I guess neither one has admit it yet! Sheesh! I wonder how long they've been together!*** Emily was about to say something to simulate a 'romantic mood'… when she heard the screams.

There were low, masculine yells and shouts as well as high feminine shrieks. Children wailed like crazy.

"Whoa!" Eric was on his feet in seconds, pulling Lisa up with him. All three looked around furiously to see what was causing everyone in town to panic like this.

"What's g-" Lisa got cut off… A pink ball of pure energy itself whizzed by her head, nearly hitting her!

Just nearby, a high-pitched female voice screeched something at the three friends. They all looked… and Lisa began screaming like she was being tortured. Just nearby, there was a woman… but she certainly wasn't human! Heck, she didn't look like she was from the Mushroom Kingdom! Her 'skin' (if you wanna call it that…) was a deep purple and she had red eyes… with no pupils.

She wore a pink dress that looked like it was made for royalty, what with the complex lines and patterns. The top of her head had white spots that (sorta…) mimicked the stereotypical Mushroom here in the kingdom. On her head, there was a silver tiara, clearly marking her superior status. She wore two silver gloves, but they didn't disguise the fact that she only had two claws on the end of each arm. The freaky lady glanced at Emily… and her red eyes widened in recognition.

She shrieked something else, but nobody could understand a word she said. She raised her left arm… and began charging another ball of pink energy! She started firing like crazy on the three allies! Lisa kept screaming and screaming as they all ran for cover! They soon found adequate shelter behind a very large 'upscale establishment' and Lisa finally shut her mouth, green eyes wide with fear.

Kneeling behind the building, the three allies huddled closely together, shaking.

"What the heck IS that thing?!" Emily demanded quietly. She glanced over at Eric… His face looked about as white as his clothing! Without warning, his brown eyes fell shut and he went totally limp. Emily was caught off guard by the sudden blackout, but Lisa was already shaking him, begging him to wake up.

"What's wrong with him?" Emily frantically asked.

"It's not his fault!" Lisa was panicking so much that she could barely be understood. "It's a habit! Whenever he freaks out too much, he faints! He can't control it!"

"Oh gosh!" Emily couldn't believe what she was hearing! Thankfully enough, Eric soon came back to his senses. He seemed disoriented, but he was fine other than that.

The three allies all listened to more shots and they could tell that there would be some SERIOUS damage to clean up later. Finally, the shots stopped. They heard the lady talking again, speaking in a language that nobody could understand. Another voice answered her.

"Blue? Forget her, sister. She is not our target." The speaker then repeated what she said, translating it into that foreign language so the other lady could understand. This new voice belonged to a woman, but it didn't sound nearly as shrill as the freaky lady who attacked the town.

This new voice was quite a bit deeper than the first. It sounded like it belonged to a lady who wasn't to be trifled with. The three allies all waited in silence for a few more minutes before poking their heads out cautiously. The town… looked awful. There were scorch marks and little drops of pinky-purple poison everywhere. Windows had been smashed and buildings looked a little worse-for-the-ware…

Citizens were slowly coming back out, shaken up pretty badly by the attack.

"… Oh my gosh… Oh my gosh!" Lisa suddenly faced her allies. "DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT THING WAS?"

"Uh… No?" Emily unsurely answered.

"Didn't you see the purple skin? The pupil-less red eyes? THAT THING WAS A _SHROOB_!" Lisa hollered.

"A what?" Emily asked. Eric went pale again and Emily was certain that he was gonna black out again. Surprisingly enough, he didn't.

"Shroobs were an alien race that invaded in the past," he shakily explained. "It was thought that they were extinct!"

"Right! The Mario Bros. defeated them!" Lisa chimed in. "But that one… Oh my gosh!

"We're in _**serious**_ danger if…" She immediately stopped talking as a hush fell over the area. Emily, Eric and Lisa watched as the legendary Mario Brothers came into view, clearly stunned by the damage. They were followed… They were escorting none other than the princess of the kingdom. The three young friends all sucked in a breath at the sight of the gorgeous Princess Peach Toadstool.

Peach's long blonde hair reached her thin waist and her simple yet lovely pink dress flowed all the way to the ground. Her bright blue eyes reflected the astonishment that she was trying so hard to keep concealed as she looked at the damage. She was obviously trying to keep calm for the sake of the residents, so as not to panic them further. Emily and the Twins had to admire how kind and wise the princess was, trying so hard to keep her people calm in this state of emergency.

"… Could somebody please tell me what happened here?" Peach asked aloud.

"W-We saw the whole thing!" Emily suddenly called over. Mario, Luigi and Peach all looked over at her, as did everyone else in the nearby vicinity. The princess slowly walked over, the Bros. trailing just beside her. The Bros.' eyes flickered in recognition.

"Um… Hi again…" Emily waved slightly.

"What in the world caused this damage?" Peach asked again. "Was it an attack from the Koopa Troop?"

"Erm…" Lisa quickly cleared her throat and gave a quick curtsy. "Your Highness," she addressed, "there's great evil among us! A survivor… No! _Two_ survivors from the horrific alien invasion so long ago!"

Peach's eyes widened.

"Mercy me…" The Mario Bros. looked at the destruction again, speechless.

"Y-Yes!" Eric chimed in. "A S-Shroob! Two of them, actually! We heard them talking! One spoke English! The other kept firing pink energy!"

"Good gracious!" Peach gasped. She turned to the Bros. "Do you think that…?" Mario and Luigi exchanged glances quickly. It was clear that they were thinking the same thing…


End file.
